For The Love Of Shuurei
by ev1l-ch1b1-urd
Summary: Chapter 6: Heki Hakumei.
1. Santa

For the Love of Shuurei. A SaiMono fic. Standard Disclaimers Apply.

Santa

Santa was in love with Shuurei. Truth be told, he had always known it, even when they were still little children. It was the reason why he always tried to find ways to get her to notice him. This was mostly the reason why he used to play a lot of tricks on her, no matter how many times Seiran made him pay for it, no matter how severely.

Yes. Santa loved Shuurei. No matter how hopeless it was.

He had always been aware of it.

Though Shuurei had a generally happy disposition, the famine of their childhood had taken its toll on her. The death of her mother, and having to rely on her kind, but clumsy father had forced her to mature, that she had to grow up too soon, and had time for little else, much less romantic relationships.

So she never noticed him...or any other boys, for that matter.

This was not comforting in the least, but he figured it was much better than having her head turned by some guy, and see it happen with his very own eyes.

And so, Shuurei grew up. And so did he. And he watched and waited, hoping one day, she would notice.

But then, she was suddenly employed at the palace...had even become a consort of the emperor. And even after that ended...the emperor had given her a chance to achieve her dream of becoming an official.

Which, she did. And she was even appointed governor of a province.

It was these things that made Santa realize that Shuurei was moving farther and farther away from his reach. And that more and more people were beginning to notice her charms.

And so, he decided. He would become a better man. He would stop doing nothing. No longer will he just watch, while she did everything she could, to achieve her goals. No longer will he watch as more and more men entered her life, and began to covet her as he did.

No longer will he stand idly by and remain weak and useless.

He will be a man as good as any man, a match for any who might think to have her.

This was what he had decided. And this was the goal he was working towards.

And he was going to accomplish it…

…even if it killed him.


	2. Riku Seiga

Riku Seiga

It wasn't fair.

It wasn't fair how easily women wound men around their little finger. It was all so easy. Every beautiful woman he had ever met wielded the selfsame weapons.

Sweet-smelling hair. Scented, soft, warm body. A carefully cultured voice to sound appealing. Limpid gaze. Graceful motions. Polite words. Smiles that were innocent, inviting, or any particular quality that might attract. Even tears…to make a man lower his guard. To draw out a person's natural inclination to protect.

Riku Seiga despised those calculating creatures called _women_. It was the reason why, as a matter of preference, he liked women who were more or less androgynous.

It was one of the reasons behind his attraction to her. That, and the fact that while she, herself, was very cunning…she was still too naïve about certain things. She let her guard down too easily. She trusted, and cared about people she barely knew. She was intellectually competent, but too innocent.

It made him want and hate her. It made him want to lead her along to a certain extent, only to crush her.

He despised how he adored her.

And seeing how prettily they made her up, as she pretended to be Jyuusan-hime, it merely intensified the feeling, making him want her so badly, he had pushed her, and taunted her, and touched her hair, her hands, her skin…even foolishly tried to kiss her.

Oh, how she tried to fight him! And how he loved the way her eyes glittered in anger and panic, and the desperate way she resisted!

He both thanked and hated bitterly, the interruption that ensued.

And so, whenever his work allowed, he found little ways to make her miserable. Anything to make her burn with the same fierce hatred he had for her, that she had no time to think of anything else, except him. It was ugly and twisted…but so was Riku Seiga. And this was the only way he knew how to love.

It was only unfortunate that it had to be Kou Shuurei.


	3. TanTan

0o0o0

Tan-Tan

To say he had no motivation was an understatement. His interest in the world around him only went as far as the things that directly affected him, and the things he valued. He didn't do anyone harm, and he didn't want anyone to do him harm. He just wanted to float down the stream of life as leisurely as he could. And while he didn't exactly _bat _for the other team, he felt that women, in general, were more of a nuisance, than they were worth. Wasn't his mother proof of that?

But that didn't mean he was anything like that Riku Seiga. He didn't hate women. He just didn't care, period.

When they had met, he had known immediately the kind of person she was. Bright eyes, a certain restlessness that zeal, that was characteristic of people who were on a mission (most often, the mission being 'to make the world a better place'). He knew that by even speaking two words with her, he would end up getting caught up in her determination, and the direction it pulled her, because he was too lazy to fight things like that. But he did. And he let her. And as he watched her beneath heavy-lidded eyes, he found himself drawn to her.

No, it was not love or infatuation. And while it was a fact that no matter how hard she worked him, no matter the trouble she inevitably got them into over and over, he felt comfortable and at peace in her presence. At times, it was almost…fun. He never could understand it.

And so in a world where the only things he valued were his and his father's well-being, he had let her in, as well.

It was true. He valued her. He cared for her. She was an important person to him.

He didn't think he was in love with her…yet. But he figured, given time, he might just end up in that predicament.


	4. Ryuuren

**0o0o0**

Ryuuren

As he walked through another of the many wildernesses he has ever explored, his thoughts drifted back to the Imperial Exams. In the beginning, he had done it, merely to get what he wanted - permission to travel, unhindered - by his foolish elder brothers, but in the end, he was glad that he did, for it was what brought her to him.

Shuurei. His first real friend.

Sure, she didn t exactly understand how his mind worked, or his methods, but he had long ago noticed that in this day and age, very few people really understood the other. Not the secret person inside that was free of what society had forced them to conform to. All anyone ever really knew how to do was to translate an action that corresponds to what is deemed acceptable by society. That was it.

However, unlike other people, she had not let this small thing turn her away from him. In fact, unlike most people who were merely forced to deal with what they thought of as his eccentricity, Shuurei, who had no need to (who definitely had enough guts to tell him to bugger off), suffered his sometimes callous remarks (which he could identify, by judging the expression on her face), and accepted his proclivities and his quirks in stride, because she knew deep down, that he was only being honest to the person he was within, and that he really was a nice sort of person (if maybe a tad bit annoying).

She even humored him, and cooked for him. She would put her foot down on something if she really had to. And while she never would understand what made him tick, he knew she saw him, -the good with the bad- not just the strangeness that often people tended to focus on.

That was why he had called her Soul friend #1. She was the first person who ever looked into his soul, and did not see a freak, but just another person, if maybe a little (to a lot) different from others. This was the reason he had agreed to his foolish older brothers to make an offer for Shuurei to marry him. Because while he couldn t really grasp the emotion of romantic love as some would call it, he would much rather be tied to a woman he actually liked, instead of someone he didn t even know.

In this world where people bowed down to him due to his lineage, his authority, even his intelligence...she treated him the same way she treated everyone else. And so did the people around her. Never had he found so many people he was unrelated to, to whom he was simply **Ryuuren.**

Not the genius from the Ran Clan. Not a member of the Ran Clan. Not a brother of the Ran Clan Heads, nor of Ran Shuuei, a great general, trusted explicitly by the emperor (though why people lauded his foolish older brothers, he didn t really know).

Just Ryuuren.

He smiles as he remembers her glare sternly, as she informed him that he needed to eat vegetables, too. It really amused him when she told him off!

enough to make him promptly compose a melody on his flute as an affectionate tribute.

**0o0o0**


	5. Riou

Riou

He remembers seeing her for the first time, as she rode into Koringun.

That determined look on her face, her straightforward gaze…the strength that she radiated, that seemed in conflict with her seemingly small, fragile build.

In her, one could see that the soul that lived inside was greater than the husk it lived in. That while her physical appearance may be plain, her mind, her soul, her very character was made it hard for a person to look away.

Indeed, Riou's first reaction of Shuurei was…bland surprise.

Sure, his goal had been To Eigetsu, but, of course that would also put him directly in the path of _that girl_ everyone seemed to have an interest in.

In a world where any sort of rumor was more impressive than the truth, he had no expectations of this…_Kou Shuurei_ he kept hearing about.

So what if the men of the capital were attracted to her? Beauty would explain that. Or a good family, either or both of which she would probably have, if her parents were anything to go by.

So what if she was intelligent? For centuries, men have known that women were intellectually capable. They wouldn't have gone through so much just to subjugate them in the first place, if they weren't aware of it (even unconsciously).

Even passing the exams and ranking high was only to be expected. Being the first to do so didn't really matter. If it wasn't her, it would have been someone else.

These opinions didn't change overnight, either.

In many ways, Riou, like most of his family, had a timelessness about him, that, despite his years, he probably understood more of the finer points of politics than she did. Of course he wasn't going to suddenly approve, after seeing her, either.

In a clan such as theirs that was rife with illusions, misdirections, plots-within-plots and and deceptions, he took nothing at face value, and chose always to start at zero, and to continue from there.

So she was capable and resourceful. It wasn't anything new.

And so he watched her. He watched her both from up close and afar, to make a better judgment of this woman.

And, because he really was an exceptional child, it didn't take him long to realize that she deserved every single drop of affection and respect she commanded.

And with growing surprise, he realizes that his own regard for her increases over time.

That it wasn't just Ren who wanted, needed the warmth that seemed never to exist in the Hyou Clan.

That, even his father's unnatural interest in her aside, and the influence she held over the chesspieces currently in play, he chose to involve himself with her, because of it.

Hyou Riou was more grown-up than most grown-ups…but Shuurei made him feel like the kid he still was. Or should have been.

A child that wants and needs affection and time. And in some ways, Shuurei was like a kind older sister or a parent.

Sometimes, he still thinks of Shuuran, and imagines that it wouldn't be so bad for her to have a role model like that.


	6. Hakumei

Hakumei

...

He resented her.

Well? How was he supposed to feel? All his carefully laid plans were wasted! Wasted!

Bad enough that the Jougen spot he coveted was taken by a kid younger than even his idol, Li Kouyuu was, and the bougen, taken by that weirdo from the Ran family...

The Tanka spot was taken by a girl. A GIRL! (okay. considering his family members, and who his sister was, this wasn't really a surprise, but come on! statistics would confirm that most women's interests lay more in...well...home making! His female relatives were just aberrations of some sort.)

Why would a girl even think of taking the national exams?! And a Kou Princess, no less!

And for the Bougen to skip the appointment, and the other two to be so dishevelled and dirty, well...

That just made him feel worse.

Nothing had gone as expected and Heki Hakumei's world was now terribly, terribly askew.

Until he heard where they were appointed and couldn't quite believe it.

Shine shoes? Clean the lavatory?

The Jougen and the Tanka, to do **What**?

And it wasn't just that, either.

He saw it all.

And while To Eigetsu was getting it bad, Shurei was getting worse treatment.

Not because she was incompetent. He saw her being assigned paperwork, too. He saw her carrying missives to numerous places, without making a mistake once, and without being unfailingly polite despite the ugly treatment she was put through.

He saw the pranks, the jeering looks and taunts, the insults, the bullying she endured, all because of her gender.

And she didn't give in or give up. She didn't cry or break down.

And he realized that apparently, the Heki clan did not have monopoly on strong, intelligent women.

Soon, he found himself helping her out, when he could, though outwardly, his irritation with her was still grossly apparent.

He wasn't entirely sure when his anger was no longer about the fact that she had bested him, had turned to outrage on her behalf.

Resentment had turned to respect.

And so he keeps at it. He helps her when and if he can. He defends her, and speaks up for her, and he supports her.

Not because he _likes_ her. Not **that** way, at least.

But because she was deserving. She was worthwhile. She was fair, honest, hardworking, and persevered.

Hakumei could keep listing all her sterling qualities, but it was all of it and something more.

She was Shuurei. For all the words he knew, that was really the only way to describe it.

He smiles, as he watches her and To Eigetsu promoted to Governor of the Sa Province and presented with flower buds.

He feels pride for them both, without feeling the least bit envy or jealousy, knowing they deserve it.

He feels pride and joy, too...that they count each other as allies and/or friends, knowing with a surety that it is a real and sincere bond.

To Hakumei, it was enough.


End file.
